Keep on Smiling
by Dragon Star Queen
Summary: Gino had made it a personal goal to get the new Knight of the Rounds to smile, and when his previous plans to engage the cheerless Eleven had failed he began to become desperate. Gino Suzaku friendship.


Gino had made it a personal goal to get the new Knight of the Rounds to smile, and when his previous plans to engage the cheerless Eleven had failed he began to become desperate. If people could hear Gino's thoughts as they turned in his head they would probably call him an idiot. A plan that could potentially hurt Suzaku more than helps him.

That thought never crossed Gino's mind though, so maybe he was an idiot for trying.

His expression was sharp and determined as he walked across the wing where the knights were staying in Area 11 with a sack slung over his shoulder.

"Suzaku," he called out as he reached the Knight of Seven's room. He had to force himself to stop at the closed door rather than barge through it like normal.

"What is it, Gino?" Suzaku asked through the dividing door. He was in the back of his room sitting at the desk making it difficult for the blond teen to hear him through the door.

The Britannian cracked the door open and stuck his head inside. His eyes scanned the room until they fell on the older knight sitting behind his desk poring over papers Gino just didn't care about. His eyes lit up when he saw the Eleven and a smile spread across his face, "can I show you something?" he asked.

The Knight of Seven shrugged his shoulders, and set the report that he was reading off to the side, "sure why not," he replied, and sat back in his chair.

Gino's smile quickly turned into a toothy grin as he walked into the room, "I'm finally going to win this time, Suzaku."

Olive eyes were swallowed in confusion as his eyebrows knitted together, "win what?"

The Britannian shrugged the bag off his shoulder. He knelt down on the ground to unzip the bag, "do you think I'd look good in a dress?" he asked in all honesty.

Suzaku just stared at him, the words taking longer than usual l to register in his brain; but he couldn't say he was entirely surprised, this was Gino after all, "It would be, uh, different."

Gino pulled the bag's contents out, white fabric followed by green and Suzaku's heart leapt into his throat, "G-Gino," he stuttered, his eyes large and full of shock.

The blond Britannian stood up and held the top of the dress against his chest. He spun around a few times completely oblivious to Suzaku's reaction, "Well I think I would make a wonderful princess," he slowed down, a little dizzy, to see the brunet Number gain a little of his composure back.

"Gino, no," Suzaku started to speak and then stopped. He bit his bottom lip and looked away from the dress.

"No?" Gino echoed, "You don't think I would look like a pretty princess?"

"No it's not that," Suzaku said shaking his head. He knew Gino would look gorgeous in anything (something Suzaku convinced himself was just the product of excellent breeding between nobility), but this was too much, "it's just difficult to picture."

Gino still couldn't catch on, too focused on his plan to make the Number smile, "what's so difficult about it, Suzaku?"

The olive eyes looked at Gino, they were cold and accompanied with an equally as cold smirk, "it's quite simple, Gino, you're a guy," but what he meant to say was probably along the lines of: "I can picture you in any dress but _that_ dress."

The innocence that Gino's eyes always held over the social norm intensified, "so I can't wear a dress?"

Suzaku sighed heavily, he didn't understand, and it was nearly a hopeless act to try to get him to, "I guess I can't stop you if you really want to."

Gino was wearing that overly excited toothy grin of his once more as he made a b-line for the bathroom attached to Suzaku's room. The Eleven shook his head and reached for the abandoned report. He tried to concentrate and figure out if Lelouch had really regained his memories from reports other than the useless OSI.

Then the bathroom door creaked open.

"Suzaku," Gino said in a sing-song voice. The honorary Britannian flinched, "how do I look?"

The emerald eyes looked up for a fleeting moment, just long enough to catch a blur of color before looking away again, "it's definitely different." _You are an idiot, Gino_.

The blond knight spun around again, the orange fabric fisted in his hands. He was giggling uncontrollably, feeling a breeze in places he was certainly not used to feeling it, "Well, _I_, think I make a wonderful princess."

For a second time he became dizzy, tripping over his own feet he fell, taking the nightstand along with him. The sounds of the cracking wood made Suzaku look up, to see Gino lying in pain on top of the now broken table.

"You lack the grace of a real princess."

He couldn't help but laugh, a very genuine laugh.

Gino stood up quickly and ignored the pain as he threw his hands up in the air, "Victory! I told you I was going to win this time, Suzaku."

The Eleven continued to laugh. The sight of the Brittanian's torso covered in gashes and splinters made him virtually forgot about his own pain for a brief amount of time, "win what, Gino?"

"Your smile," The Knight of Three replied as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.


End file.
